Fountain pen



Dec. 25, 1945. M. BORAL 2,391,385

FOUNTAIN PEN Filed Sept. 16, 1944 TNvENToR Max floral l 'I W A TORNEY Patented Dec. 25, 1945 UNITED I nOnNTAIN PEN' ManBoraI, NewYork, N.Yl 7 Application September 16,1944, Serialm strust 'My present invention relates generally "to fountain pens. H

- A general object of the invention is'to provide a pen which has a large inkcapaci tmwh-ich is relatively inexpensiveto manufacture, and which has an: im-proved'fill-ing mechanismthat is simple to manipulate, staunch and rugged construction, and reliabIe in operation.

A more particular object of the inventionis to provide an improved arrangement and assembly oi parts in which the filling mechanism does not depend in any way upon the expansion or contraction of a rubl'aersac or similar element. whose wearing qualities are relatively short-lived. A feature of the present construction lies/"in the ability to employnothing but rigid elements of wasn't-resistant character which may be com posed entirely of metal, glass, plastics, or equivalent materialssuitable for the purpose. V

. A? further object. of. the invention resides in the provision of a structure in which the filling mechanism is of: such a character that it may, if. desired, be constructed. as a separate 'unit, and assembledas such with the fountain pen barrel, thus facilitating; the process of manufacture of both the filling mechanism and the: port as: a whole.

A. particular feature of theimproved pen construction. lies in the fact that'lthe: the pen is at alltimes: preventedi'rom. coming into contact with any part of the filling mechanism thereby not only establishing a leakprooi condition, but also safeguarding the. filling mechanism against ink contamination and consequent possible impairment of smooth and reliable functioning.

Among the improvements which characterize the present invention is. the provision, near the rear end of the pen, of a transverse partition which defines aforward ink chamber and a rear pump chamber, the partition having an aperture: oi special character which establishes com-- munication between said chambers and themevision of a special type of separator in the ink chamber adapted to float on'the ink and prevent' the ink from entering the pump chamber through said aperture. More particularly, the. aperture mentioned is formed in a nipple which: projects from said partition into said ink chamber, thereby defining an annular channel around it which makes it practically impossible for any ink topass through the aperture even in the extreme eventuality (not contemplated or'likely) that some ink may leak past the separatorl Theseparator ispprovided with a reentrantportion adapted tofit over said nipple and seal said aperture when the ink chamber is fully filled Another improvement resides in the special construction. andjmode of functioning of a. piston mounted. for reciprocation im'the pump chamber, whereby unusual. accuracy be practiced. manufactura producing a simple;. compact, and reliably eflicient. pumping I a hieve the; foregoing objects-and advert-- tages, and: such other ob-i'ects and advantages as may hereinafter appear or be pointedv out, in. the manner illustratively exemplified. in'the accompanying drawing in which:

Fi ure 1 is a longitudinal. viewota fountain .pen embodying the ieatures of the present invention, with the: rear broken away;

'Fisureflai-s an rflmse longitudinal erossescctional view of the rearend; of. the barrei and the mechanism associated with it, the piston of the Portion: of the barrel pump chamber being shown in its normalinoperative position and the: chamber bein almost. completely filled, ith ink;

Figure 3 is a view similar to. Figural showing the-piston. in a completely withdrawn position,

indicating its efiect -u-pon. the ink. level;

Figure 4- is a view similarto'Eig'ures 2 and, 3 showing: the pistomduring it return stroke; and Figure 5 is a view similarto Figures 2,, 3 ami- 4 showing, the piston duringits final return stroke after the-ink chamber has; been completely filled; The barrel Ill of thepin maybe 015 any Suitable external contour or size, may be: composed of any desired rigid material. Near its rear end it is provided with. a transverse partition it (see Figures. 2-5) which defines a forward; ink chanther and a'rear pu-mpchamber; This partition is p-referably held position by providing. a rearwardly-directed shoulder 12; on the interior.

of the barrel l0 and abutting the marginal: norpump chamber or unit and on the interior of the cap l5, whereby the cap may be screwed and unscrewed into and out of its normal position as shown in Figures 1 and 2. A neat and workmanlike appearance may be produced by making the exterior side surface of the cap I5 flush with the exterior side surface of the barrel H], as shown.

It will be understood that the pump chamber need not necessarily constitute a separate unit, and its walls may if desired be formed integrally with the material of the barrel l0. From a manufacturing standpoint, however, it is preferable to construct the pump chamber as a separate unit,

as shown, the same being tightly fitted and secured within the rear end of the barrel I0 during the process of manufacturing the pen. The walls of the pump chamber unit-may be assembled and held together in any suitable fashion, and I have illustratively shown the side and rear walls l3 and 14 as being integral with each other, and being secured, as at H, by means of a weld or otherwise, to the end wall or transversepartition The partition H is provided with a nipple [8 which projects into the forward ink chamber [9 and is provided with a bore or aperture which establishes communication between the ink chamber l9 and the pump chamber 2L The nipple ['8 is preferably arranged at the center of the wall H and provides an annular channel around it which makes it practically impossible, at any time, for any fiuid other than air to pass rearwardly from the ink chamber l9 into the pump chamber 2 I. I

In the rear wall Hi there is an opening 22 through which a piston rod 23 extends. This rod is secured in any suitable manner to the cap [5 so that the latter may serve as a pump handle when it is unscrewed or otherwise separated from its normal engagement with the rear wall of the pen.

At the forward end of the piston rod 23 there is a piston which consists of two portions, a forward portion and a'rearward'portion. The rearward portion 24 is provided with at least one air passage through it, and I have illustratively shown a number of small passageways or openings 25 arranged close to the piston rod 23. The portion 24 need not necessarily fit tightly Within the bore of the pump cylinder since the operative part of the piston is the forward portion which consists of two separate sections 26 and '21. The central section-26 is mounted on the rod 23 in fixed spaced relation to the piston portion 24 and has a peripheral surface 28 which conforms to the surface of a cone with its apex directed rearwardly. The section 21 is an annular element whose inner surface conforms accurately to said conical configuration, and whose outer peripheral surface establishes a snug yet slidable fit with the bore of the pump cylinder.

Before proceeding to describe the operation of the mechanism, attention is directed to the element 29 which floats on the ink in the ink chamber I9. This element has a marginal skirt portion 30 which establishes a snug yet slidable fit with the interior cylindrical wall of the ink chamber, and is also provided with a reentrant portion 3| so arranged and dimensioned that when the separator 29 is in its uppermost position (as viewed in the present drawing) it fits-over the nipple 18 as indicated in Figure 5, thus sealing the aperture 20.

Assuming that the pen is partially filled with ink as shown in Figures 1 and 2 and that it is desired to complete the filling of the ink chamber, the cap I5 is first unscrewed so as to make it available as a pump handle for longitudinally moving the piston rod 23 back and forth and thereby effect corresponding reciprocatory movements of the piston. During the rearward movement of the piston into the position shown in Figure 3, the sections 26 and 21 of the forward piston portion move together by reason of the conical configuration of their contacting faces. This creates a suction beneath the piston and draws air upwardly from the ink chamber into the pump chamber. Assuming that the writing end of the pen has been immersed in a suitable filling source, this suction will cause ink to flow into the ink chamber. This is indicated by the different ink levels shown in Figures 2 and 3. This introduction of ink causes a corresponding rise in the separator 29 which constantly floats on the ink while at the same time preventing any leakage of ink past the skirt portion 30 into the space above it. On the downward movement of the piston, the section 21 no longer follows the section 26, and these sections therefore move downwardly in separated relationship as shown in Figures 4 and 5. This permits air to pass rearwardly between these sections and through the air passages 25, thence out of the pen through the opening 22. This reciprocation of the pump piston is repeated as often as may be necessary to complete the filling of the ink chamber. When this chamber is filled, the separator 29 will automatically seal the aperture 20 and thus prevent further rearward movements of the piston. The piston is then merely restored" to its normal position and the cap l5 re-screwed or otherwise re-secured to the pen barrel.

The filling procedure is of course the same where the ink chamber iscompletely empty to start with.

When the user writes with the pen, the ink level falls and the separator moves downwardly behind the ink, its skirt portion 30 being fitted to the barrel with a minute but sufficient clearance to permit this movement of the separator to take place.

If desired, the separator may be caused to serve also as an ink-level indicator, provided the barrel is composed of a sufliciently transparent or translucent material.

It will be observed that the construction is completely devoid of any relatively soft or yieldable members which would call for the employment of rubber'or other material of poor wear-resistance. All of the elements may be and are preferably constructed of rigid materials having good wearing qualities, such as metal or the like. It will also be observed that the movable parts of the pump mechanism' are constantly guarded against any possible contact with ink. No shaking or other mishandling or possible abuse of the pen can cause any of the ink in the ink chamber to leak past the separator 29 or to work its way rearwardly into the pump chamber. Moreover, except when the pump mechanism is being operated, the piston lies fiush against the inner end of the aperture 20', thus serving as a further safeguard against any possibility of entrance of ink. As a result, the pump mechanism may be accurately machined and lubricated during the course of manufacture and will maintain a smoothness and reliability of eflicient operation at all times. Coupled with these advantages is the fact that the pen is attractive and stream-lined in appearance, it may embody any selected external contour or shape, and the barrel is utilized to an unusually large extent for the accommodation of ink, the capacity of the pen being considerably greater than that of ordinary pens employing rubber sacs or similar ink-holding or ink-filling instrumentalities.

In general, it will be understood that the details herein described and illustrated to explain the general nature and mode of operation of the invention and the preferred form in which it may be embodied, may readily be modified by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention and illustrated its use, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a fountain pen, a barrel, a transverse partition defining a forward ink chamber and a rear pump chamber and provided with an aperture establishing communication between said chambers, a reciprocable piston mounted in said pump chamber, means controlled by the piston reciprocation for creating a suction in the pump chamber which draws ink rearwardly from a filling source into said ink chamber, and a separator slidably mounted in said ink chamber and adapted to float n the ink therein to prevent said ink from entering said pump chamber through said aperture.

2. In a fountain pen, the combination of elements set forth in claim 1, said aperture being formed in a nipple projecting into said ink chamher, said separator having a reentrant portion adapted to fit over said nipple and seal said aperture when the ink chamber is fully filled with ink.

3. In a fountain pen, a barrel, a transverse partition defining a forward ink chamber and a rear pump chamber and provided with an aperture establishing communication between said chambers, a reciprocable piston mounted in said pump chamber, and means controlled by the piston reciprocation for creating a suction in the pump chamber which draws ink rearwardly from a filling source into said ink chamber, said means comprising forward and rearward piston portions, the rearward portion having at least one air passage therethrough, the forward portion comprising a central section in fixed spaced relation to the rearward portion and a separate relatively movable annular section, said sections being adapted to contact snugly along a rearwardly-converging conical surface, whereby said sections remain in contact during rearward piston movements and separate during forward piston movements thereby creating a suction during rearward movements and allowing air to travel rearwardly between said sections and through said passage during forward movements.

4. In a fountain pen, the combination of elements set forth in claim 1, said barrel having a rearwardly-directed interior shoulder, and said partition being marginally abutted against said I shoulder.

5. In a fountain pen, the combination of elements set forth in claim 1, said barrel having a rearwardly-directed interior shoulder, and said pump chamber being constructed as a unit and comprising a cylinder whose forward wall is said partition and abuts marginally against said shoulder.

6. In a fountain pen, th combination of elements set forth in claim 1, said barrel having a rearwardly-directed interior shoulder, and said rear wall.

MAX BORAL. 

